48: Chapter 48 Child Bride, or Sent to a Brothel

Tiger Li relit his pipe and stopped looking at him. "Grind until you have enough money to go to the Inner City, or grind until you get lucky one day and stumble upon a peerless Secret Manual."

After saying this, Tiger Li walked away with his hands behind his back, swaying as he hummed an unknown tune.

Only Chen Mo was left sitting by the stone table, staring blankly at the deep knife mark on the table surface.

The wind grew stronger, whipping up the dust on the ground and stinging his eyes.

Chen Mo touched the hard book of the Turtle Breathing Technique tucked inside his chest.

The path was blocked.

The black market was closed, the yamen had no stock, and he couldn't afford a martial arts school.

It seemed that the only path left before him was truly the one Tiger Li had mentioned—Jiang Hongli.

That woman who wore red, carried a long blade on her back, and looked at the living as if they were already dead.

"Damn it all."

Chen Mo cursed under his breath.

He didn't want to cause trouble, didn't want to be a hero; he just wanted to practice his martial arts in peace and live for hundreds or thousands of years.

But this world was like a giant millstone, forcing you to keep moving forward, forcing you to touch those dangerous things.

Because if you don't climb upward, you will be ground into mud.

"Ask her?"

The thought popped into Chen Mo's mind, but he quickly suppressed it.

"No, it's too dangerous. That woman is too clever; if I show even the slightest flaw, she'll see right through me."

"But... if I don't ask, how can I practice this Turtle Breathing Technique? Without an internal Mind-Cultivation Technique, even if I master this Tiger Demon Bone Refining Fist, I'll just be an Advanced thug. If I encounter real demons, I'll still die."

Two little figures were still fighting in Chen Mo's mind.

One was named "Hide," and the other was named "Greed."

"Hide" was for staying alive, and "Greed" was for becoming stronger.

And in this world, if you don't become stronger, you can't survive.

It was a vicious cycle.

Chen Mo stood up and brushed the dust off his backside.

The movement was a bit loud, as if he were trying to shake off all the bad luck from the morning.

He had only taken two steps when he stopped again.

His feet felt rooted to the ground, and the image of that Little Girl, skinny as a bean sprout, hovered in his mind. The name Little Grass was humble, supposedly making her easier to raise, but if he really left her alone in that dilapidated shack, she wouldn't be grass—she'd be dry tinder, ready to be consumed by the slightest spark.

He turned around and called out to Tiger Li, who was strolling back with his hands behind his back.

"Boss, wait a moment."

Tiger Li stopped, turned to look at him, his murky old eyes filled with a hint of impatience. He was still clutching the pipe bowl he had just knocked clean.

"What is it now? You think the five taels of silver was too much and want it back?"

"How could that be? Money given away is like water spilled." Chen Mo leaned in, a smile plastered on his face, though it wasn't sycophantic; it was more the casualness between acquaintances. "I wanted to ask you about a place. In our city, is there any... place that takes in children?"

Tiger Li raised an eyebrow, as if he had heard something novel.

"Take in children? The Foundling Bureau?"

He scoffed, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth stained yellow by pipe oil. "You'd dare send someone there? The winter before last, there were more straw mats carried out of the Foundling Bureau than there were wild dogs in the mass grave outside the city. Sending her there is just helping the King of Hell meet his quota."

Chen Mo's heart sank. In this world, there were truly no charitable institutions.

"Then, besides the Foundling Bureau?"

Tiger Li looked Chen Mo up and down, his gaze becoming strange, and a playful smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. "I say, Chen Mo, you're acting strange. You usually look so honest and simple, so why are you suddenly asking about children? Could it be... you have some romantic debt out there? Did an illegitimate child find you?"

"Boss, you're mocking me now." Chen Mo gave a bitter smile. "If I had that kind of ability, would I still be a Runner here? It's Old Man Li from next door."

"That cripple?"

"He passed away last night." Chen Mo sighed. "When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out, but he left behind a burden. Her name is Little Grass, only seven years old. I felt pity for the girl, so I brought her back to my room last night, but I'm not exactly cut out for raising a child. I was just thinking of finding a way for her to survive."

After listening, Tiger Li smacked his lips, put the pipe bowl back in his mouth, and without lighting it, just sucked on it dryly.

"Seven years old..."

He squinted his eyes, as if calculating something. "A seven-year-old girl can do quite a bit of work. Washing clothes, cooking, serving tea and water. In another two years, when she grows up, she can even warm the bed."

Chen Mo's eyelid twitched.

Tiger Li glanced at him, his tone as flat as if he were discussing what to eat for dinner. "Don't act holier-than-thou with me. For people like us, finding a wife isn't easy. Since that girl has no parents, just raise her. It's just an extra pair of chopsticks. Let her serve you, and in seven or eight years, once you consummate the marriage, you'll have a ready-made wife. This is called a child bride; you know her background, and you don't have to pay a bride price. What a cost-effective deal."

Chen Mo's teeth ached upon hearing this.

This logic was impeccable in this era. But after all, he was a soul from a Transmigration, and although his heart had hardened quite a bit during this time, he couldn't get over the mental hurdle of having such thoughts about a scrawny seven-year-old girl.

"Boss, this... isn't really appropriate. I treat her like a younger sister." Chen Mo shook his head, refusing flatly.

"A younger sister?" Tiger Li looked at him as if he were an idiot. "Even a biological sister can be sold for rice, let alone one you just picked up."

Seeing Chen Mo's look of displeasure, Tiger Li didn't press him further, just shook his head, seemingly mocking the young man's squeamishness.

"Since you don't want to raise her as a wife, there's only one road left."

Tiger Li reached out and pointed toward the east of the city, the liveliest place in the entire city, heavy with the scent of cosmetics.

"Send her to Yichun Courtyard."

Chen Mo's brow instantly furrowed into a " river" shape, and his face sank. "Boss, that is a pit of fire."

"A pit of fire?"

Tiger Li took the pipe bowl out of his mouth and pointed at the dilapidated yamen courtyard, his voice rising a few notches. "Chen Mo, open your eyes and look. Where in this world is not a pit of fire? Is this place not a pit of fire? Are the refugees outside the city digging for food not in a pit of fire?"

He stepped forward, glaring at Chen Mo.

"What's wrong with Yichun Courtyard? It's a place to squander gold, but also a den of comfort! Send that girl there, and even if she's just a maid doing menial labor, at least she won't have to worry about starving to death on the street. Inside, they eat white rice and fine flour, wear silk and satin, have charcoal in winter, and ice in summer."

Tiger Li spoke with righteous confidence, even carrying a hint of sincere "I'm doing this for your own good."

"If that girl is lucky and grows up to be pretty, and some madam takes a liking to her and trains her for a few years, she'll be a cash cow. If she's eventually spotted by some wealthy merchant and redeemed to be a concubine, isn't that better than following a poor Runner like you? That's flying up to the branch to become a Phoenix!"

Chen Mo didn't speak; he just subconsciously reached for the hilt of the blade at his waist, his knuckles turning white.

Tiger Li didn't notice his movement and was still there, gushing with his "life experience."